Saturday, August 17, 2019

Endangered Language Profile: Basque


Biotzetik Basque Choir



Language and culture are closely tied together, and when one disappears the other is sure to follow (if it continues to exist at all).  There is a great deal of importance in preserving languages and cultures, as a result, and today’s blog post highlights one such language that is considered endangered: the Basque language.  This blog post will discuss what the Basque language is and the means of preserving and revitalizing its use among not only those who identify as Basque but also by enthusiasts.

The Basque language, also commonly referred to as Euskara, is a language spoken by the Basque people, who hail originally from northern Spain and southern France but large populations of Basque are scattered throughout the Western United States (specifically Nevada and Idaho).  The Basque language is unique as it is considered a language isolate, meaning it is not similar to any modern-day European languages.  Instead, Basque is considered to have been influenced by various languages spoken in Europe throughout history, including languages now long extinct (e.g. Celtic, Latin, and Gascon).  

The Basque language is identified as an agglutinative language, which is defined by the use of multiple prefixes or suffixes on a root word to change the meaning of the phrase or sentence.  This language type is common throughout the world.  The Basque language, however, does have some unique aspects to it, specifically in that the language has no ƒ consonant and no simple r sound.  Additionally, there is no consonant after the initial s and no consonant clusters within the language. These are features, however, found within Castilian Spanish, a dialect of Spanish spoken throughout northern Spain.  It is believed that Castilian Spanish and Basque borrowed lexicons and grammar from each other.

While the Basque people have undergone a series of grave events throughout their history (e.g. extermination under Franco’s dictatorship in Spain and modern-day governmental interventions throughout Spain and France) the Basque are determined to keep their language alive.  Special language courses in Basque are provided throughout Europe and the US to native Basque and those interested in learning the language.  These programs have been very successful in revitalizing the Basque language.  As one Basque individual living in the US noted this success may be credited to the special status given to Basque language speakers, who are considered more prestigious than people who are simply Basque. 


Works Cited

Berriochoa, Kattalina. The Blue Review. 23 May 2014. Electronic. 19 July 2019.
Bilbao Turismo. Bilbao Bizkaia. 2019. Electronic. 19 July 2019.
Porzucki, Nina. The World in Words, PRI. 31 May 2018. Electronic. 19 July 2019.
SIL International. Basque: Ethnologue. 2019. Electronic. 19 July 2019.
The Graduate Center. SUM CUNY. 15 January 2019. Electronic. 19 July 2019.
Watkins, Thayer. The Nature of the Baque Language. n.d. Electronic. 19 July 2019.
Zabaltza, Xabier and Ivan Igartua. etxepare. 2016. Electronic. 19 July 2019.

 



12 comments:

Anonymous said...

This was an interesting article considering that I have never heard of the Basque people. I wonder if the children catch on to the language as we do with English or does it take them a little bit more time to comprehend?
-Jasmine Busby

Dr. Christine Elisabeth Boston said...

Good question, Jasmine. Language learning is like any new skill-practice makes perfect. There is effort required to learn any language, which is dependent on amount of study, comprehension, dedication, and practice. It may take someone longer than another due to a deficiency in one or more of those areas, but any language (or new skill, for that matter) can be learned with the appropriate effort and time.

Anonymous said...

What I got from this article is that the Basque language is borrowed from the Spain grammar. This language to me is one of the hardest to learn because it has so many prefixes and suffixes. Does this mean everyone in Spain does not speak this language it in most parts of Spain does. As a US citizen if this language class was a option I would use to my advantage because it seems like an interesting language to dedicate my time too even though the other languages are interesting also.
-crystal riley

breonia gregory said...

Wow, I found this article to be more interesting than I originally anticipated. I've never heard of this Basque language. Knowing that the language is borrowed from Spain makes me a little more intrigued about its history and the history of the people who speak it.
-Breonia G

Jasmine Busby said...

Its cool how the basque language is a mixture of multiple languages put together.Its also great that there are programs out there to help revitalise the language. Ive never heard of the language before this article ,but it seems to be interesting and also hard to learn.

Malalia Siafa-Bangura said...

I've never heard of the basque language before, however I find it interesting how it's a mixture of multiple languages. This is cool because there many dialects and other languages that are composed of different languages, for example; My language, Krio. Me speaking it, makes it easier for me to understand my friends and teammates who are from the islands because they speak patois, which is a form of broken english, which also a part of the language that I speak. -Malalia Siafa-Bangura

Anonymous said...

I have never heard of Basque people until reading this article. I wonder why languages go extinct and how do new ones come about? Also how do the people catch on so quickly.-castrele hoy

Chyann Taylor said...

It's so impressive how there are many languages that we can go our entire lives without knowing about them. For me, Basque is the language. I never really thought that a language could be isolated but still have a decent amount of people speaking it, especially in the United States. I can see how the language could have favored Castilian Spanish.
- Chyann Taylor

Anonymous said...

Hi,
I would love to hear how one language is derived by combing three other languages (Celtic, Latin, and Gascon). Considering that I have never heard either, I believe it would be cool to hear someone speak this language. Joell Davis

Kenzell White said...

I was completely unware of this language. The way Dr. Boston explained the Basque people I can tell that they're deeply genuine and true to what they believe in and I would also like to actually hear the language get spoken.

Unknown said...

Its ironic that I came about this post because back in High school choir we sang songs in the basque language. It is fascinating how language differs and by adding on a few letters to a word, it can change the whole meaning. I love that this language is a mix and the people in the culture just want the spread the language and enthuse about it.
-Kennedy thompson

Amou Riing said...

The post emphasizes the interdependence between language and culture, emphasizing how maintaining one is essential to the survival of the other. This acknowledgment highlights the profound cultural value ingrained in languages such as Euskara. The post sheds light on the unique characteristics of the Basque language by describing certain linguistic traits of Euskara and comparing them with Castilian Spanish, such as the absence of some consonants and unusual phonetic patterns. This gives the conversation on language preservation movements more depth.